Earth Sky Stars » Environment http://earthskystars.net/blog blog for earthskystars Mon, 30 Aug 2010 08:35:00 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 Climate Change Won’t Go Away! http://earthskystars.net/blog/2010/08/26/climate-change-wont-go-away/ http://earthskystars.net/blog/2010/08/26/climate-change-wont-go-away/#comments Thu, 26 Aug 2010 12:54:52 +0000 Bill Clugston http://earthskystars.net/blog/2010/08/26/climate-change-wont-go-away/ Last year’s Climategate email scandal created a lot of confusion and doubt about climate change. Unfortunately the physics and science hasn’t changed. The last decade was the warmest on record and this summer also saw record heat.
Climate change is here and isn’t going away!

]]> http://earthskystars.net/blog/2010/08/26/climate-change-wont-go-away/feed/ 0 Review of “$20 Gallon” http://earthskystars.net/blog/2010/04/20/review-of-20-gallon/ http://earthskystars.net/blog/2010/04/20/review-of-20-gallon/#comments Wed, 21 Apr 2010 01:36:33 +0000 Bill Clugston http://earthskystars.net/blog/?p=215 Just finished listening to the audio book version of $20 per Gallon. A good listen, with the theme of what life would be with gasoline prices at different amounts. The author starts at $4 per gallon and works his way up from that price. The book strikes a hopeful note that life will actually become better as the rising price of petroleum forces us to stop using fossil fuels.

The indexing of the lifestyle changes to the price of gasoline was a nice touch. It’s something everyone can relate to. Here’s a link to the book’s site:
20$ per Gallon

]]> http://earthskystars.net/blog/2010/04/20/review-of-20-gallon/feed/ 0 Copenhagen Climate Change Conference — it’s time to act! http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/10/13/copenhagen-climate-change-conference-its-time-to-act/ http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/10/13/copenhagen-climate-change-conference-its-time-to-act/#comments Tue, 13 Oct 2009 13:19:11 +0000 Bill Clugston http://earthskystars.net/blog/?p=189 Climate change is real science. We’ve studied it to death under the Bush administration and it’s time to act. Even Bush appointees on IPCC agreed that climate change poses a real threat to our world. Climate change will cause mass extinctions, famine, severe weather changes, and possibility even war. Want to see Indian and China duke it out over water rights? Not a pretty picture since both countries have nukes, but it could happen if the glaciers in the Himalayas melts.

A recent CNN article pointed out this very real possibility.

Put pressure on the politicians to craft a real, workable climate change agreement at the Copenhagen Conference. Go to Blog Action Day 2009 and add your voice!

More info:
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
Copenhagen Climate Change Conference
NASA Global Climate Change Site

]]> http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/10/13/copenhagen-climate-change-conference-its-time-to-act/feed/ 0 Ways to save water http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/04/18/ways-to-save-water/ http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/04/18/ways-to-save-water/#comments Sun, 19 Apr 2009 02:31:13 +0000 Bill Clugston http://earthskystars.net/blog/?p=170 Climate change or not, water is fast becoming a constrained resource. It’s also becoming an expensive resource! Look at your water bill if you don’t believe me.

How can you save water and money at the same time? Try these steps:

1) Add low flow aerators to your faucets. Inexpensive and easy to do.

2) Add a water-filled bottle to your toilet’s water tank. This reduces the amount of water per flush.

3) Better yet replace your toilet with a 1.28 gallon per flush unit. It will flush better than a toilet using the water bottle trick and may even improve your home’s value. I’m using an American Standard Compact Cadet 3 FloWise unit. It works a treat and is on the EPA’s WaterSense list.

4) Here’s a possible fourth item. A faucet hot water heater. It should definitely save water, but what about the energy use? Any comments?

]]> http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/04/18/ways-to-save-water/feed/ 0 How will ecosystems adapt to climate change? http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/04/18/how-will-ecosystems-adapt-to-climate-change/ http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/04/18/how-will-ecosystems-adapt-to-climate-change/#comments Sun, 19 Apr 2009 02:21:48 +0000 Bill Clugston http://earthskystars.net/blog/?p=169 If you have concerns about Climate Change and you’re in Seattle May 27-28, EPA Region 10 has the workshop for you. Sponsored by our Environmental Assessment Division, “The Plight of Ecosystems in a Changing Climate: Impacts on Services, Interactions and Responses Workshop” will help answer this question and more. The workshop is open to the public, but you need to register at the website.

]]> http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/04/18/how-will-ecosystems-adapt-to-climate-change/feed/ 0 “Extreme Ice” on PBS’ NOVA series http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/29/extreme-ice-on-pbs-nova-series/ http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/29/extreme-ice-on-pbs-nova-series/#comments Mon, 30 Mar 2009 04:40:37 +0000 Bill Clugston http://earthskystars.net/blog/?p=166 Want some real evidence of Climate Change? If you missed the PBS program “Extreme Ice” you missed a lot. The program, a collaboration between PBS (Public Broadcasting) and National Geographic, highlights the rapid decline of glaciers around the planet. And even more worrisome, the unexpected changes in the Greenland and Antarctic ice caps. While losing the mountain glaciers will only bring sea level increases of one to three feet by the end of this century the loss of the major ice caps would cause changes in the hundreds of feet! This would be very bad news for any major coastal cities.

Still think Climate Change is BS? Time to wake up.

Also check out the supporting National Geographic Extreme Ice Survey site.

]]> http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/29/extreme-ice-on-pbs-nova-series/feed/ 0 Nature Conservancy’s State of the Birds report http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/22/nature-conservancys-state-of-the-birds-report/ http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/22/nature-conservancys-state-of-the-birds-report/#comments Mon, 23 Mar 2009 05:37:05 +0000 Bill Clugston http://earthskystars.net/blog/?p=160 I don’t know about you, but one change I’ve seen in my environment is a reduction in birds in my backyard. Whether it’s domestic cats (hopefully not, I have two!), habitat destruction, or climate change something is causing a steep decline in our avian friends. There is good news and bad news in the report. Download (4mb PDF) the report and read it for yourself.

]]> http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/22/nature-conservancys-state-of-the-birds-report/feed/ 0 ESA’s Earth Explorer Satellite Program http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/17/esas-earth-explorer-satellite-program/ http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/17/esas-earth-explorer-satellite-program/#comments Tue, 17 Mar 2009 16:31:38 +0000 Bill Clugston http://earthskystars.net/blog/?p=159 ESA (European Space Agency) will be launching a series of satellites named Earth Explorers. Each of these satellites will examine our planet with a different set of instruments. Our planet is changing in many ways and these robotic explorers will help us understand how and why.

The first mission, Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer (GOCE), just launched from Russia and will map the Earth’s gravitational field in detail. An unique mission, the GOCE satellite flies at the edge of the Earth’s atmosphere with constant orbital corrections provided by an ion engine. The next missions are listed below from ESA’s web site:

ADM-Aeolus
The prime aim of the Atmospheric Dynamics Mission is to demonstrate measurements of vertical wind profiles from space, using a high performance Doppler Wind Lidar based on direct-detection interferometric techniques. ADM-Aeolus is due for launch in 2011.

EarthCARE
Earth Clouds Aerosols and Radiation Explorer (EarthCARE) will improve the representation and understanding of the Earth’s radiative balance in climate and numerical forecast models. EarthCARE is due for launch in 2013.

Opportunity missions:

SMOS
The Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) mission, scheduled for launch in 2009, will exploit an innovative instrument designed as a two-dimensional interferometer for acquiring brightness temperature observations at L-band (1.4 GHz) for the estimation of soil moisture and ocean salinity to further our understanding of the Earth’s water cycle.

CryoSat-2
The CryoSat-2 satellite replaces CryoSat, which was lost as a result of launch failure in October 2005. Scheduled for launch towards the end of 2009, CryoSat-2 will measure fluctuations in the thickness of ice on both land and sea to provide conclusive evidence as to whether there is indeed a trend towards diminishing ice cover, furthering our understanding of the relationship between ice and global climate. CryoSat-2 will carry an innovative SAR/Interferometric Radar Altimeter (SIRAL).

Swarm
The objective of this mission is to provide the best-ever survey of the geomagnetic field and its temporal evolution in order to gain new insights into the Earth system by improving our understanding of the Earth’s interior and climate. Swarm is due for launch in 2010.

]]> http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/17/esas-earth-explorer-satellite-program/feed/ 0 North pole expedition looking for signs of climate change http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/16/north-pole-expedition-looking-for-signs-of-climate-change/ http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/16/north-pole-expedition-looking-for-signs-of-climate-change/#comments Tue, 17 Mar 2009 04:49:53 +0000 Bill Clugston http://earthskystars.net/blog/?p=157 A British team is on the arctic ice this Spring looking for signs of climate change. The Catlin Arctic Survey will be trying to determine if the Arctic ice cap is breaking up and if it is, put a solid time frame on the break up. To this end, the three team members, Pen Hadow, Ann Daniels, and Martin Hartley will be out on the ice from February to about May. They will be carrying a ground-penetrating radar that allows the expedition to measure ice thickness and composition.

You can follow the survey at the Catlin Artic Survey’s website.

]]> http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/16/north-pole-expedition-looking-for-signs-of-climate-change/feed/ 0 Ikea introduces solar-powered lighting … http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/10/ikea-solar-lighting/ http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/10/ikea-solar-lighting/#comments Wed, 11 Mar 2009 00:02:42 +0000 Bill Clugston http://earthskystars.net/blog/2009/03/10/ikea-solar-lighting/ CleanTechnica.com posted an article on Ikea’s new line of solar lighting. The Swedish furniture superstore is a leader in green furnishings and lighting and it looks like they have no intention of losing that lead. The lights range from $6.99 to $19.99 in price. Here’s a link to the $19.99 worklight.

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